Integrative Research Group
Brian McConkey, Jean-François Soussana, Lee Nelson
IRG: a new group approved by Council
end 2015
IRG vision and scope
Vision
• Collaborative work to develop the knowledge and capabilities for estimation, monitoring,
and projection of GHG emissions and soil carbon within and across agricultural systems
Scope: Address identified Research, Development, and Knowledge Transfer (R-D-KT)
opportunities
• Integration of scales (local, subnational, national, and supranational scales)
• Applying, reporting, monitoring, and/or verifying greenhouse gas emission estimates across
farming systems
• Communicate and coordinate
• Foster the building of capability of member countries.
IRG meetings
Joined session with the Livestock Research Group (Melbourne, February 2016)
Briefing during Paddy Rice Research Group America’s meeting (Arkansas, July 2016)
Briefing session during Council Meeting (Mexico City, October 2016)
Joined Session with the Cropland Research Group (Phoenix, November 2016)
Network meeting Field Scale Integration (Rome, March 2016)
IRG group meeting, side by side with FAO/IPCC meeting on soil carbon (January 2017, Rome)
Integrative Research Group
achievements
• 10 member countries have joined so far
• The group has been set-up with five research networks
• Terms of reference have been established for the group and for
the networks
• Each network has expressed 3-5 priority actions, accounting for
feedbacks during meetings
• Monthly teleconferences with network leaders and webinars
Integration across scales
Developing strategies for pastures
Quantifying soil carbon potential
Grasslands
Soil
carbon
Understanding M&A options at field scale
Field
Improving tests of options at farm and
region scale
Farm,
region
Improving national inventories
Inventories
Adopt a network
Country, or associated partners, could adopt a network
Fund initial meetings and development of activities
Grasslands: F. Lattanzi (Uruguay), K. Richards (Ireland),
Soil carbon sequestration: C. Chenu (France), D. Angers (Canada),
Field scale : JF Soussana (France), P. Smith (UK),
Farm and regional scale : R. Eckard (Australia), P. Havlik (IIASA),
GHG inventories: J. Verhagen (Netherlands), B. Mc Conkey
(Canada).
Priorities in each network (1/3)
Grasslands
Guidelines for SOC measurement/monitoring in grasslands,
Data base on grazing practices vs. soil C and GHG emissions
Mixed systems (temporary grasslands, integrated systems)
Highlight: National project in Uruguay supported by GEF
Soil carbon sequestration
Co-benefits of soil carbon for yields and adaptation,
Monitoring, reporting and verification of soil carbon
Soil organic carbon dynamics modeling
Highlight: Permanence of soil carbon vs. duration of practices
Priorities in each network (2/3)
Field scale
Mitigation and adaptation options assessed from multi-model
ensemble
Climate sensitivity of GHG emissions and soil carbon
Statistical emulators for N2O emissions and soil C
Highlight: accurate multi-model simulations of N2O emissions
Farm and regional scale integration
Demonstration farm network
Farm calculators and soil carbon
Pilot region assessment studies
Regional maps of mitigation and adaptation potentials
Highlight: Corn yield loss and land degradation under climate
change
Priorities in each network (3/3)
GHG inventories
Guidance on how to improve inventories, including data on activities,
Moving to Tier 2, sharing examples from countries,
Country specific emission factors
Highlight: sharing sensor technologies
Highlights
1. A national project by URUGUAY supported by GEF/ FAO (World
Bank) to increase beef production and store carbon in soils
2. Permanence of improved practices is key to achieving soil C
sequestration potential
3. Without site specific information a multi-model ensemble
predicts accurately N2O emissions from crop and pasture
across 4 continents
4. Land degradation lowers corn yields by end of century, due to
losses in soil fertility in countries with low or negative nutrient
surplus
5. Capability building led by NZ and LRG, sharing and
collaborating on methodologies, planning inventory meeting
in 2017 (UK)